Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich (1891-1942)

[Vasillisos Markos]

From what I am reading about Queen Marie on the links dear Russo provided me, it appears that Marie of Romania was crazy about two royals when she was a child: Alexandra, Princess of Wales and Grand Duchess Elizabeth, the wife of Sergei and sister to Empress Alexandra. It would make sense then, if it turns out Marie kept in contact with Elizabeth, that she would get to know Grand Duchess Marie Pavlovna, the Younger, because Elizabeth raised her, no? I know from reading other comments that Marie was not crazy about Ella but it may be that Queen Marie got to know the younger Marie through her fascination with Grand Duchess Elizabeth.

 

[Russophile]

VM, did you read Ella by Warwick? It gives some interesting insight in Marie the younger's life. When you read Education of a Princess Marie paints Ella as cold and wanting to get her out of the nest after Sergei died to run away and be a nun. Ella DID facilitate the marriage between Marie the younger and Wilhelm of Sweden, however, it wasn't a completely loveless marriage as Marie claims. There are Swedish archives I'd love to get my hands on of Marie's letters to Wilhelm and somebody put them in a book called "My dear Darling Willy".
Dmitri came to Sweden and visited her as much as he could. They were very very close. I wonder if Dmitry ever told Marie about that night he helped Felix kill Rasputin.

 

[Vasillisos Markos]

Russo my dear,

I have not read the Warwick book but I believe you and others told me that Marie disliked her step-mother. I just wonder if Queen Marie of Romania had such a fascination with Ella, then maybe this put her in contact with Marie the Younger, especially since they were also blood relatives. I will try to find any threads.

I imagine Dmitri had to confide in Marie about his involvement with Rasputin's death but who knows?

 

[Odette]

I believe the agreement was that no one would discuss the details of that night's events. All present (involved in the murder) kept their word. The only one who wrote a book about it giving his version of what happened was Felix Youssoupov.

 

[Vasillisos Markos]

A few posts back we discussed Dmitri's sister, Grand Duchess Marie, and her friendship with Queen Marie of Rumania. Here is a link to an article GD Marie wrote about Q Marie, shortly before the latter's death in 1938:

Queen Marie of Romania / Queen Marie of Roumania - Vogue Magazine, September 1938

It is a pity GD Marie does not go into much detail about her friendship with Marie, especially after fleeing Russia and traveling to Rumania for safety. In GD Marie's autobiography, does she go into a lot of detail about Queen Marie of Rumania?

 

[Odette]

Actually in her book "Education of a Princess" the only references about Queen Marie are when GD Maria was in Odessa with her second husband and Q Marie was in Jassy. The GD wrote letters to the Kings of Spain and Sweden and the Queen of Romania looking for information about her father. She makes no mention about responses from any of them.
Then when in November she was ill a messenger came briging her a letter from the Queen asking her to join her in Jassy. Romania at that point was under German command and the GD left Russia on the train that took her to Bendery and out of Russia.

 

[Grandduchess24]

I am just surprised and wonder how he got so lucky and die old because after all he was the cousin of the czar and a grandson of another czar, his father was a Russian grand duke and he was a male to male descendent of czar Alexander II I am sure the Bolsheviks wanted him since they murdered most of the Romanov males that were able to inherit the throne. The murder may have actually saved his life.

 

[Vasillisos Markos]

Actually in her book "Education of a Princess" the only references about Queen Marie are when GD Maria was in Odessa with her second husband and Q Marie was in Jassy. The GD wrote letters to the Kings of Spain and Sweden and the Queen of Romania looking for information about her father. She makes no mention about responses from any of them.
Then when in November she was ill a messenger came briging her a letter from the Queen asking her to join her in Jassy. Romania at that point was under German command and the GD left Russia on the train that took her to Bendery and out of Russia.

My dear Odette,

Thank you for this information. It seems that Queen Marie adored Grand Duchess Marie's step-mother, Ella, and thought she was one of the two most beautiful women she knew (the other was Alexandra of England, her aunt by marriage). I thought that maybe Marie's feelings about Ella would have made her connect somehow to Grand Duchess Marie, even though Marie was not fond of her step-mother.

I am just surprised and wonder how he got so lucky and die old because after all he was the cousin of the czar and a grandson of another czar, his father was a Russian grand duke and he was a male to male descendent of czar Alexander II I am sure the Bolsheviks wanted him since they murdered most of the Romanov males that were able to inherit the throne. The murder may have actually saved his life.

You are right. Dmitri's involvement in Rasputin's murder caused the Tsar to banish Dmitri from the country and this saved his life as he was out of Russia when the revolution struck.

 

[Russophile]

I am just surprised and wonder how he got so lucky and die old because after all he was the cousin of the czar and a grandson of another czar, his father was a Russian grand duke and he was a male to male descendent of czar Alexander II I am sure the Bolsheviks wanted him since they murdered most of the Romanov males that were able to inherit the throne. The murder may have actually saved his life.

He didn't die old. He was only 49. He had always had a case of turbuculosis all his life. In the Crawford book on Michael and Natasha he coughs up blood in front of Natasha and laughs it off and keeps smoking.

 

[CyrilVladisla]

Because of the difference in age, Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich referred to the Tsar as "Uncle Nicky".
Nicholas II and the Grand Duke Dmitri were actually first cousins.
​

 

[CyrilVladisla]

Grand Duke Dimitri Pavlovich, his aunt Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna and cousin Grand Duchess Victoria Feodorovna
http://www.loveempirerussia.tumblr.com/post/151891140672/grand-duke-dmitri-pavlovich-his-aunt-grand

 

[CyrilVladisla]

Grand Duke Dimitri Pavlovich of Russia circa 1915
http://www.gettyimages.com/license/112088390

 

[An Ard Ri]

A little further reading on the life of Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich
Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich of Russia